I have an invitation – no, more of a challenge – for all of the consultants, GPs and nurses reading this blog piece. I’m doing this because my last blog piece (see here) to the government saw zero responses from anyone in politics. I know, I shouldn’t be surprised. So, I am holding out hope that those of you in the medical professions will come through instead.

Over the past while, I’ve seen countless family carers, such as myself, get behind the nursing strikes and the #CareCantWait campaign supporting consultants and GPs. Carers support all of you because you are the ones who have dedicated your careers to giving expert care to our vulnerable family members, and indeed at times, saving their lives. We could never adequately voice our gratitude for the work you all do. 

Having said that, we don’t want to see you unless we absolutely have to – and I say that with a dash of humour but fully in truth. 

We support your campaigns for reforms and improvements in your various sectors of the health system, and in the health system overall. We do this because we are the *frequent fliers* in the system. We know it forwards and backwards. We live it every single day, but usually at home. And, we know just how important your work is to our fragile loved ones.

What I ask here is two-fold:

1. Recognise that we, as family carers, are on the very front line of care. We are the ones who often make the difference between a complex case landing at your door or exam room or ED, or being handled at home. We administer life saving medication, suction airways, provide for orthopaedic care concerns, clean and dress chronic skin wounds, provide emergency seizure care…and so very much more.
2. Support our fight, which is similar to yours, for reforms and improvements. We don’t have a union or a professional body which advocates for our rights and needs, which are also the needs of those we care for – your patients. We need your collective voice, understanding the vital work we do, to join with ours as we advocate for more supports, improved services at home and in the community. Maybe then the government will take family carers seriously and listen to our concerns.

As I discussed in my last piece linked at the start of this blog piece, if family carers can no longer care, or care as well as they would hope to do and are expected to do, the health system that will end up even more overloaded than it already is now. You will see our vulnerable family members more often. You will see us carers more often, exhausted, physically ill and/or hurting with injury from caring with no supports.

We are all connected in this way – your profession and our work as family carers.

Let’s work on this together.